Chelsea Transfer Rumours: Latest Buzz Surrounding Wayne Rooney

The Wayne Rooney saga—or maybe "epic" is more appropriate—isn't coming to an end anytime soon.

Really, rumours surrounding the versatile English forward can be tracked back to the start of the 2012-13 season, if not earlier.

When Sir Alex Ferguson held his star out the lineup for "fitness reasons," whispers began to circulate, and throughout the season, many wondered if the relationship between manager and player was at least starting to crumble.

It was all speculation backed up by very little concrete evidence, but in a way, it laid the groundwork for what was about to be a wild summer.

When Fergie stepped down and was replaced by David Moyes—the same David Moyes who often butted heads with an albeit young Wayne Rooney at Everton—the rumours of Rooney's restlessness at Old Trafford only skyrocketed.

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Since the transfer window opened, we have gone back and forth between "Rooney wants out" and "Rooney's not for sale" more times than Dwight Howard flip-flops on the kind of sandwich he wants for lunch.

"The market is open until 31 August and many clubs are waiting to the last moment to make their decisions, and those decisions affect a number of other clubs," Mourinho said.

"The one who sells has to go and buy, then they have to buy to replace, so no club is safe."

"Until the last minute, a club can go there and steal a player. I don't mean steal a player but steal the balance that a manager has when he's working with a team."

So, hopefully you're comfortable with Rooney rumours.

From Chelsea's perspective, one of the main reasons this potential move has been questioned is the Blues' already solid strike force.

With Fernando Torres, Romelu Lukaku and Demba Ba already entrenched up front, the need for Rooney is debatable.

But Lukaku, whom many believe will overtake Torres for consistent first-team duties as striker, doesn't envision a problem sharing the pitch, per Wilson:

“If he [Rooney] is part of our team I will welcome him with open arms,” said Lukaku.

Asked if he and Rooney could make a good partnership, Lukaku said: “Obviously, but it is the manager’s choice. You have to accept that you have to work hard to make it a successful squad.”

Part of what makes Rooney such a compelling target is his versatility. According to WhoScored.com, he played left forward, centre-forward, right forward, left attacking mid, center attacking mid and right attacking mid last year.

Prediction time. Who will Wayne Rooney be playing for during the 2013-14 season?

Manchester UnitedChelseaA different clubSubmit Votevote to see results

Prediction time. Who will Wayne Rooney be playing for during the 2013-14 season?

Manchester United

20.1%

Chelsea

76.3%

A different club

3.6%

Total votes: 443

You can put him in a bunch of different positions, and he'll find a way to make a positive impact.

Nevertheless, him fitting with Chelsea is only half of the equation, as Manchester United would still need to agree to a transfer.

And with Moyes seemingly unwilling to budge on that front, you can expect this story to continue to drag on.